Part of the Exelior anniversary series. A good though not overwhelming beer. Incredible coffee nose. Black with some bubbles. Leaves lace. Lactose to make it a sweeter milk stout, and that adds a little sourness in the finish. Carbonation has eased off through cellaring a couple of years. A little light on mouthfeel. Not so great for coffee fans, but decent drinkability.

Poured into a tulip glass. Color is very dark brown bordering on black with a tan head and a bit of lacing. The nose brings forward a pretty good dose of roast and coffee with a little bit of chocolate in there. The flavor is coffee and chocolate and has a nice bit of cream, which is quite nice in the mouthfeel. Good carbonation and body. Drinks fairly well, but a bit too roasty with the coffee being a tad bit burnt.

Appearance: Pours a fudge brown color with just a hint of tawny highlights; the head was very modest and frittered away quickly, leaving just a few dots of lace

Smell: Smells like a rich cup of Sumatra with just a bit of sugar and lactose

Taste: Strong coffee flavor at the outset, with a developing lactic sourness that overwhelms by mid-palate; hints of chocolate and sugar linger underneath, after the swallow, but the profile is somewhat one dimensional

Mouthfeel: Medium body with low carbonation; a bit thin for the style

Overall: I have bumped up the scores by .5 across the board to account for the age and oxidation factor; I suspect this beer was a lot better in its youth but as other reviewers have noted, it has not aged particularly well

Appears like pitch black dark roasted coffee and forms a mocha tan head that is fleeing and dwindles very quickly, thin speckled lacing is whimsical. I love all of these Excelsior brews that I've come across this is batch E!016 and this isn't the first time I've had it. This is my second encounter with the Eleven and it was a gift. It smells of ice brewed Sumatra coffee, this is great stuff. Aroma fills the senses with dark roasted malts and sharp acidity it's definitely creamed with milky lactose additions bringing that sharp character that works with the coffee additions. Flavor works so well this beer is kickin' with coffee. Creamy layers of coffee and chocolate this is a milke stout with layers of complexity and coffee. Mouthfeel is oily with fresh coffee beans cracked, incredible soft carbonation flows smoothly, the body is medium bodied and feels so good. Drinkability overall is solid I can't take it this 750 ml bottle drains itself. Awesome stuff between complexity/flavor/drinkability and feel to the experience this should be brewed again in the future. Awesome Ithaca beer much like Ten and Alpha Alpha. Great brews from this series.

T - The flavor has a creamy maltiness that hints at lactose w/ light coffee and the taste has a subtle candy-like vanilla/carmel malt flavor w/ subtle milk chocolate smoothness in the taste. The hint of spice accents the stout w/ mild coffee bean notes...earthy, yet not dry w/ creamy as the best descriptor here. The flavor has a quality almost like tiramisu, w/ roasted coffee, cocoa and vanilla dessert flavors

D - The drikability is great w/ a smooth, not overroasted coffee and milk stout blend. So flavorful and subtle it tastes like under 5%, you only notice the alcohol as it nears cellar temp, a little strong/ sweet for more than 2 in a session IMO.

A - Two and a half fingers of quick dissolving tan foam that leaves a few isolated spots of lace and a solid cap. Dark, dark, brown color, that would be transparent if held to a very bright light. Some nice hints of lighter browns and reds.

S - Wow - there is a ton of coffee in this bad boy! There's also a good amount of baker's chocolate, lactose sugar, a hint of vanilla, and even a bit of floral hop character.

T - The taste is quite similar, but with a fair amount of roasty bitterness in the finish. The aftertaste features an odd and slightly off-putting old coffee flavor, which brings this beer down a tiny bit.

M - Carbonation is a little too tingly for my liking, and the body is medium-thin but still fairly smooth. Lots of residual stickiness.

D - Very drinkable at 7.5%, as the alcohol is very well-hidden and the flavor is quite nice. Not as intense or "special" tasting as the TEN, but still a very enjoyable brew.

Near black in color. Large, beige head that leaves ample lace on the glass. No light shines through the glass, even on the edge.

Deep dark chocolate and earthy nose. No coffee smell at all.

The flavor continues the aroma profile except drier but with an essence of dried fruit, like raspberries and sour cherries. Lots of burnt toast! On the tongue, there's a strong bitterness that is similar to coffee grounds--very surprising. Not at all creamy or sweet. Long lasting, black patent malt aftertaste.

Overall, a very different stout with extraordinary burnt malt flavors.

The beer pours a dark black color with a thick frothy tan head that slowly fades to lacing. The aroma is good. It has a very nice roasted malt and coffee scent along with some sweet lactose and chocolate malt aroma. The taste is good as well. It has a dry roasted feel with a bitter black malt and coffee edge. It gives up a bit of hop character and a slightly sweet finish. I think I would have left the lactose out of this one myself. The mouthfeel is fine. It is a full bodied beer with good carbonation. This is a pretty good stout. I love the concept, but I'm a bigger fan of the Kaffinator beer. This one might be a little too bold for it's own good.

The beer pours a dark brown color with a tan head. The aroma is strong coffee and vanilla. The flavor is roasted malt, chocolate and coffee. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation. This is an excellent sweet stout that I hopefully will get to try again.

Clear, dark black color with a tan head and lots of sediment in the bottom of the glass. Aroma is burnt coffee grounds , roast malt and more char. Begins with a strong coffee flavor with a strong roast malt body before finishing with a lactic milk stout sweetness that lingers well into the finish. Not bad, but nothing special and not worth the price for a 750.

Pours a deep dark brow, almost black color with slight mahogany edges when held to a light source. Completely opaque with visible carbonation bubbling up the side of the glass. One finger dark mocha head that very quickly dissipates into a thin ring. No lacing at all.

Deep roasted malt aroma with hints of dark fruit, lactic cream and earthy hops. Hints of chocolate, burnt coffee bean, toffee, oatmeal ans slightly acrid burnt character. The lactic presence and dark fruits give off a slight licorice and soy scent. There is a lot going on here, too much possibly and the aroma is slightly off putting.

Slightly viscous medium body with a very prominent roasted malt flavor. There is a nice luscious chocolate malt presence underneath but it is overpowered by the acrid burnt toast and deep roasted coffee presence. There is also an overwhelming bitter earthy hop presence up front which compliments the roasted character but cancels out any lactic creaminess(I'm not picking up much) and smooth maltiness. The dark fruit and licorice character from the aroma becomes more evident as this beer warms. This beer is complex but not very well balanced and even though it is only 7.5% this beer tasted pretty hot. I'm a fan of Ithaca and a big fan of the Excelsior! Series but this beer was very disappointing.

Poured into a chalice a black color, nice carbonation, little fizzy tan head, with minimal sticky lacing left behind. The nose is malty, with lots of chocolate/toffee/coffee, some roasty notes. The taste is slightly sweet, malty, very nice smoke/roast note, a big coffee note, with some chocolate/toffee. Medium body, a nice smooth/creamy texture. Drinkable, this one is pretty tasty today. Glad to have gotten a chance to try it, Thanks Wayne.

Poured into fluted goblet. Poured a solid black and very still. Low carbonation and just a bit of head that had low retention and lacing.

The aroma was dominated by roast and coffee, but did have just a bit of sweetness underneath. The flavors were the same story, bit some tartness and a pleasant light funk did show through behind the strong coffee and roast aspects.

The body was smooth and solid, very nice. Drinkability would depend on your taste for coffee. I hate coffee, so this isn't a good thing for me, but the beer was good for what it was trying to be. Overall, a nice brew that probably wasn't harmed by aging, but may not have been helped either. If you happen to see a bottle, this brew is worth your time.

This bottle was shared with a good friend in what turned out to be a pretty solid tasting. It pours a viscous black in color with a one finger beige colored. The nose is initially straight sumatra coffee beans. Yes please. As far as flavors go, the melted chocolate integrates very well with the coffee and infinite lactose. Damn this one is smooth! I'd say it's pretty heavy on the mokah. The longer you sip it the better the blend. The coffee is so perfect at this point. It is exceptionally smooth and drinks oh so well. I'd say this beer is drinking perfectly right now. Pick one up if you still can!

Pours black with a light brown to tan head. In the aroma, coffee, hazelnut, vanilla, and hints of alcohol. In the taste, sugary coffee, vanilla, and alcohol hints. A smooth and medium to big mouthfeel, with a small dry coffee like aftertaste. Quite rich, big coffee and somewhat creamy.

Pour is dark brown with a small amount if fuzzy dark brown head. Nose is fairly clean roasted coffee, very strong, with notes of milk chocolate and a touch of soy sauce. Taste is rough, highly acrid and sweet residual sugar in back. Coffee bitterness lingers through the finish. Body is oily and falls off in the finish with low carbonation.